10/12/26: Motor City
11 minutes ago
2 min read
Detroit wasn't on any of my travel lists, but I have wanted to go for a while. Being a bit of a gearhead, it's hard not to want to. Even though I'm well aware it's not what it once was, I was still expecting to see car factories, shipping docks lining the shores, and huge corporate headquarters.
What I first saw didn't let me down. Entering along the river from the south, the first signs of the city we saw as the sun rose were the steel mills, which appropriately belched smoke, steam, and fire in the name of industry. After that, there were power plants, which weren't as exciting, but of course you'd need them for what was to come: a pretty regular, mid-sized city. There were some flat, cemented areas and abandoned docks that suggested loading slips or factories, but that was the extent of it. The skyline featured intricate carvings and materials that harkened towards past grandeur, but it was sparse. The most striking building was a five-towered, space-station-like building that brandished a big Marriott "M" at the top. On the Canadian side were hotels and casinos.
Not terribly inspired and with no where to tie up we continued on another 20 miles to the "Nautical Mile," which was a very impressive array of marinas and nautical shops. We ploughed our way into Miller Marina with the keel in the mud, where we tied up and settled in. After doing so we went for drinks at Mike's on the Water, which was a bumping restaurant getting ready to shut for the season. As we got ready to leave, our bartender pointed us in the direction of "the museum." The entrance to the museum was discreetly tucked in the waiting room on the opposite side from which you enter the restaurant, and it was by far and away the most impressive thing I saw today, and up there for the entire trip. It was North America's largest collection of Snoopy memorabilia, and only the photos do it justice.
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